asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs on what grounds and by what authority Aouni Bey Abdul Hadi, a leading advocate in Jerusalem and belonging to one of the best known families in Palestine, was refused a visa to proceed to London by the British Consul in Paris after he had left Geneva, where he had been in attendance as a delegate, to go to London; whether he is aware that Aouni Bey is at present in Paris, desiring but unable to proceed on his journey; and whether he has any statement to make on the subject?

The visa was refused at the direction of His Majesty's Government. The answer to the second part of the question is in the negative. His Majesty's Government do not feel justified in granting visa facilities to Aouni Bey Abdul Hadi, who was a member of the Arab Higher Committee. For the reasons stated in the official communique issued by the Government of Palestine on 1st October, this body has been declared illegal, and those of its members who have been found in Palestine have been arrested and deported.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what was the type of evidence on which the decisions were made for the deportation of Arabs from Palestine?

I have nothing to add to the explanatory statement issued by the Government of Palestine on 1st October, which read as follows:"The Palestine Government has been gravely concerned by the existence of an organised campaign of terrorism and assassinations directed against individuals in this country.During the last four months this campaign has become intensified in its activities.The action now being taken is a direct result of this murder campaign.On the 13th June an attempt was made to assassinate Mr. R. G. B. Spicer, Inspector-General of the Palestine Police Force. There followed a number of assassinations of both Arabs and Jews, the campaign culminating on the 26th September in the dastardly murder of Mr. L. Y. Andrews, the District Commissioner of Galilee district, and of British constable P. R. McEwen.The Officer Administering the Government has therefore found it necessary to institute action against certain persons whose activities have been prejudicial to the maintenance of public security in Palestine and who must, thus, be regarded as morally responsible for these events.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether the Arabs at present under detention will be released for purposes of negotiation?

I can give no undertaking as to the release of persons now under detention.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies how many Arab houses in Palestine have been destroyed; by whom were these houses destroyed; and how many of the owners of these houses had previously been tried and convicted?

I am not in possession of information that would enable me to answer this question in full, but I will inquire whether the necessary particulars can conveniently be supplied.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he has received reports of the looting by Japanese troops of houses in the Hungtjao Road district of Shanghai occupied by British citizens who had signified their nationality by hanging out Union Jacks, when watchmen, who attempted to protect these houses, were forcibly turned away by the Japanese; and whether any action is being taken to prevent a recurrence of these incidents and to secure compensation for the British citizens who have suffered loss in this way?

No, Sir. The reports which I have received of looting in this district are concerned with retreating Chinese troops. His Majesty's Representatives are doing everything possible to protect British property and compensation will be claimed in every case in which a claim is justified.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether it is his intention to publish a report of the British delegation to the League of Nations Assembly as a White Paper; and when this report will be available?

Yes, Sir. It is hoped that the report will be published early next month.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether, as a result of the Imperial Conference of 1937, a British-born woman, who has received the nationality of an alien husband and has nevertheless retained her Australian, Canadian or New Zealand citizenship, may claim protection and assistance from representatives of His Majesty abroad when there is no separate diplomatic representation of the particular community to which she belongs?

Under the British Nationality and Status of Aliens (in New Zealand) Amendment Act, 1934–35, and similar legislation passed in the Commonwealth of Australia in 1936, a British woman who has acquired foreign nationality by reason of her marriage with a foreigner and has thereby lost her British nationality may elect to retain while in New Zealand or Australia, respectively, the rights and obligations of a British subject. These rights are purely local and any assistance which such women might receive from British consular officers could be given only as a matter of courtesy. They would not be entitled as of right to British protection in foreign countries and if they desired intervention on their behalf with foreign authorities their appropriate course would be to apply for assistance to the diplomatic or consular authority of their husband's country. So far as I am aware, no similar legislation has been enacted in Canada.

asked the Minister of Health whether he is aware that the March Rural District Council, Norfolk, desiring land for housing purposes, were unable to accept an offer of the owner of one acre one rood in Church Road, Walsoken, considering the price too high; that land at Terrington St. John has since been acquired; and if he will state the area and price of this latter site as well as the rateable value, both of the land at Walsoken and the land at Terrington St. John?

My right hon. Friend has made inquiries into the matters referred to by the hon. Member and he understands that, while the facts relating to the site at Walsoken are as stated, land at Terrington St. John has not yet been purchased and my right hon. Friend regrets that he is unable therefore to give the desired information. I may perhaps remind the hon. Member that under the provisions of the Local Government Act, 1929, agricultural land is deemed to have no rateable value.

asked the Minister of Health whether he is aware that the Llwchwr Urban District Council, Glamorgan, have been endeavouring to acquire an acre of land for the purpose of road making in Dulais Road, Pontardulais, and were not able to proceed because they found the landowner's price too high; whether negotiations have been resumed and with what result; and for what purpose the land in question was previously used and what was its assessed value for rating purposes?

The attention of my right hon. Friend had not previously been drawn to the matter, but I am making inquiries and will let the hon. Member know the result.

asked the Minister of Health whether he is aware of the condition of the water supply in the rural districts of Marshland and Upwell, in Norfolk, and if his attention has been called to the fact that Upwell people have been reduced to drinking water from the ditches; what steps are being taken to remedy this state of affairs; and, if improvement depends upon the acquisition of land, on what terms such land can be purchased?

The attention of my right hon. Friend had not previously been drawn to this matter, but I am making inquiries and will let the hon. Member know the result.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Air whether he can state the number of persons who have joined His Majesty's Air Force during the years 1935, 1936, and to the most recent date during the current year, and whose homes were in South Wales and Monmouthshire?

It is regretted that the figures cannot be given without an undue amount of labour, since statistics which are compiled do not show the place of domicile of recruits.

asked the Postmaster-General when the telephones for the following schools in Greenock will be installed, viz.: the Academy, the High School, and St. Columba's Roman Catholic secondary school?

I understand that no request for the provision of telephone service at these particular schools has been received. On Friday last, however, the Renfrewshire Director of Education requested an interview regarding telephone service at three schools in Greenock which possibly relates to the three schools in question. If application is made at an early date, every endeavour will be made to provide service before the beginning of next term.

asked the Postmaster-General, whether, before allowing members of his staff to volunteer for inoculation tests, he considered what would be the position of any person judged to be tubercular as the result of such tests; and has he any statement to make?

This question was raised by the Staff Associations concerned and they were given an assurance that reports made by the investigators on individuals would not be passed on to the Department.

asked the Postmaster-General whether, before allowing girl employés of the Post Office to be asked to volunteer to under inoculation tests, he made any inquiries into the tuberculin to be used in the experiments and, in particular, whether he satisfied himself that it differed from the tuberculin of 25 or 30 years ago, and which has now been discarded for human inoculation, and that it is not the same as is now used for testing cattle?

Full inquiry was made by the Chief Medical Officer to the Post Office, before the Royal College of Physicians was given permission to ask for volunteers. I understand that the tuberculin used is not the same preparation as that used 25 to 30 years ago, nor is it the same as that now used for testing cattle, but is the International Standard tuberculin of the Medical Research Council.

asked the Minister of Pensions how many men in receipt of life disability pensions and how many war widows are recipients of relief from the Liverpool Public Assistance Committee?

I regret that the records of my Department do not enable me to give this information, and I understand that the statistics of the Ministry of Health do not provide for this.

asked the Minister of Pensions whether, in view of the difficulty in appeal cases in arriving at a proper conclusion regarding the award of a pension to a widow or other dependant of a deceased pensioner for lack of sufficient medical evidence, he will arrange for the early examination of all pensions of 30 per cent. and over, and periodical examination afterwards?

I am satisfied that this proposal would not serve any useful purpose, having regard to the ample arrangements already in existence for obtaining medical evidence. Moreover, I would remind my hon. Friend that it was decided many years ago as the result of widespread complaints from ex-service men themselves to abolish the system of periodical medical examination.

asked the Minister of Labour if he will arrange to transfer unemployed men from the Special Areas on the North-East Coast and in South Wales to those rural areas where aerodromes and other Government buildings are being erected, so as to provide these men with work and thereby prevent farms being denuded of agricultural labour at a time when it is part of the national policy to increase the production of home-grown food?

The Department is at all times anxious to arrange for unemployed workpeople from the Special Areas to have the opportunity of securing suitable openings available in other districts and numbers of workpeople from these areas have, in fact, been transferred to employment at some of the new aerodromes which are being erected.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he is aware that the contribution of the Rockefeller Foundation towards the

I would refer the hon. Member to my reply to a similar question by the hon. Member for Clay Cross (Mr. Ridley) on 3rd November, to which I have nothing to add.

asked the Secretary for Mines what were the quantities of coal exported into the Dominion of Canada for the first 10 months of this year from Great Britain, the United States of America, Germany, Indo-China and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, and comparative figures for each year since 1933, respectively?

Statistics for the first 10 months of 1937 arc not yet available for any of the countries mentioned with the exception of Great Britain; the latest period for which particulars are available for all of them is January-June, 1937.The following statement shows the figures for January-June, 1933–37, and for the complete years 1933–36. The latest available figures for each country for 1937 are also shown.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he has further considered the poor service of late trains between Glasgow and Edinburgh, there being no train leaving Glasgow for Edinburgh from Monday to Friday after 9.50 p.m., and also the representations that complaints have been made to both railway companies who have not replied to the complainers; and whether he has any further statement to make on the matter?

We have communicated again with the railway companies, who assure us that the potential traffic would not justify a service later than the train which now leaves Glasgow for Edinburgh at 10 p.m., on Mondays to Fridays. They ran a train from Queen Street to Edinburgh at 10.40 p.m. on these days from May, 1927, to September, 1930, but had to withdraw it owing to lack of patronage. The companies cannot trace receipt during the last year of any written representation as to the need of a later service.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he will state the number of motor vehicles licensed to ply on the roads in Germany, France, and England, respectively?

The approximate numbers of motor vehicles (excluding motor cycles) licensed to run on the roads in Germany are 1,521,300 and in Great Britain 2,409,000. Official figures for France are not available, but an unofficial estimate published in that country put the number at the end of 1936 at 2,100,000.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland, whether he has con- sidered the resolution passed by the Lanarkshire division of the British Medical Association wherein, while heartily agreeing with the principle of the Maternity Services (Scotland) Act, 1937, the medical practitioners of Lanarkshire regret they cannot accept service under the Act; whether he has received any further representations on the subject; and whether negotiations are taking place?

I have received a copy of the resolution referred to by my hon. Friend. I am aware that local associations of practitioners in Lanarkshire and certain other districts of Scotland have expressed their dissatisfaction with the terms of remuneration which the Department of Health for Scotland, after consultation and in agreement with the Scottish Committee of the British Medical Association, suggested to local authorities as a suitable basis of arrangements with practitioners for medical services rendered by them under the Maternity Services (Scotland) Act, 1937. I am informed that in consequence of the attitude of these local associations the Scottish Committee of the British Medical Association have summoned a representative meeting of their constituents to be held on 16th December to consider the matter further.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland, whether any change has been made in the scheme for the improvement of poultry breeding in Scotland?

Yes, Sir. In view of altered circumstances it was decided this year to adopt a new scheme under which the names of approved breeders will be published in a register which will be widely distributed. The old scheme, which involved the payment to approved station-holders of bonuses based on the numbers of day-old chicks and hatching eggs sold by them, is being continued in operation in those parts of the congested districts where the industry is in a backward condition.